KUALA LUMPUR: Job losses in Malaysia eased to 6,197 workers as of June 22, down from 7,766 in May, the Dewan Rakyat heard today.
Economy Minister Akmal Nasrullah Mohd Nasir (pic) said job placements through the Social Security Organisation's (PERKESO) MyFutureJobs platform rose by 55% as of June 12, indicating that labour market conditions remain manageable despite global uncertainties.
"MyFutureJobs recorded a 55% increase in placements, from 12,119 people in April to 18,756 in May, bringing the total number of job placements in 2026 to 62,644.
"The government is also monitoring whether recruitment continues to take place in the labour market," he said during Minister's Question Time in the Dewan Rakyat on Thursday (June 25).
He was responding to Mohd Syahir Che Sulaiman (PN-Bachok), who asked about mitigation measures implemented through the National Economic Action Council (MTEN) to address rising job losses and business downsizing arising from the energy crisis and global economic uncertainty, as well as the outcomes achieved to date.
Akmal said the decline in job losses was partly attributable to government interventions under the Progressive Acceleration for Capability and Employment (PACE) initiative, an economic resilience package worth RM710mil aimed at protecting jobs.
Through PACE, he said, more than RM580mil has been channelled through PERKESO to strengthen the Employment Insurance System.
"Another RM100mil has been allocated to the Human Resource Development Corporation (HRD Corp) to carry out training and job placement programmes, supported by the MyFutureJobs platform to facilitate job matching.
"There is also RM20mil to train gig workers through the Skills Development Fund Corporation (PTPK) and RM10mil through Talent Corporation Malaysia (TalentCorp).
"Through these interventions, the national labour force increased to 17.33 million people, while the number of employed persons rose to 16.82 million as of April 2026," he said.
He also said that Bank Negara Malaysia had made RM5bil available under the SME Stabilisation Relief Facility (SME SRF), with more than RM700mil approved for over 1,000 small and medium enterprises (SMEs).
He added that Malaysia's unemployment rate remained below 4% despite edging up slightly from 2.9% in March to 3.0% in April.
Akmal said the highest number of job losses in 2026 was recorded in January, when 10,658 workers lost their jobs, largely due to businesses transitioning into the new year and restructuring their operations.
Meanwhile, he said a ministerial statement on the current economic situation following the energy crisis and global economic uncertainty is expected to be tabled in the Dewan Rakyat next Monday (June 29).
